Deadly Pause
by Poetic-Mind
Summary: Under Constrution! Yes, I'm alive...
1. Tears, blame, and questions of the mind

Hello! Long time no see, yeah? I've missed you!

Well, I've revamped, redone, and pretty much did over this story, so if you liked the old version better...

SCREW YOU!

That is all.

P.S.

There is one thing you should know. I do not go by length in my stories, I go by the number of words in each chapter. If you count them, every chapter should have about 1000-2000 words, or more. So there!

_Now_, that is all.

P.S.S.

_Random quote #1: "Put your troubles in a pocket with a hole in it." –Old Postcard_

_Random quote #2: "We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails." –Anonym_ous

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the way I think. And write. And the way I say 'scuba'.

Heh heh... Scuba... ... ... _scu-ba_... ... ... ... ... ... ... scuba!... ... ...yup...

**_Tools: _**

Blah**_" talking _**

_Blah**' thoughts**_

_**Words with (**_number_**) after them have definitions at the bottom of the chapter because I encourage learning!**_

Enjoy!

Now really, that is all.

* * *

"Did he come out from his room yet?" Robin asked camly to the back of Cyborg's head as he leaned against the kitchen's counter top. His arms were crossed in a casual and nonchalant (1) manner that wouldn't have emitted any dwelling and worried vexation (2) if it weren't for his betrayingly revealing fingers that tapped continuously on the side of his arm. Even with his concealingly mysterious mask on, one could tell his eyes harboured feeling of sorrow and regret for something that wasn't even his fault, something that he couldn't forestallingly (3) prevent.

"No." Cyborg sighed after a contemplating and pondering silence. He turned off the screen in front of him he'd been watching in hopes of taking his mind off matters he had no ascendancy (4) or control over and let his thoughts be lost in the mind-numbing delirium that is day-time television, but there was nothing on that caught his attention. He laid backward against the soft and cool leather of the rounded and bicephalous (5) couch and closed his eyes tiredly as the events of day behind them finally caught up with him.

_ 'How... how did this happen?' _He thought to himself as his hand reached up and rubbed his eyelids, mechanical fingers working in circles to subdue the weary uneasiness he felt.

Soon, an uncomfortable silence persued them, as the bitter, unrelenting winter snow does the unexpecting and unprepared ground. Though it is merely a drifting follower of cold and hard times, caught in an ancient routine that God laid down himself, it is determined to destroy all hopes of warmth and thoughts of consolation.

"Why is he doing this to us? To himself?" Robin asked the incommunitave wall across the room suddenly and piercingly, breaking the snowdrift of quiet. "We're all worried about her, but..."

He couldn't continue. Talking about them hurt, as if someone had taken a rusted and dull blade and stabbed his already bruised and suffering heart. He knew Beast Boy loved Raven, adored her, with all that his devoted heart could ever hope to give. Everyone did. All with the exception her, and now...

_'He may never get the chance to tell her.' _His mind promted to remind him, conclusively finishing his sentence for him.

"Any word from Star?" Cyborg asked, opening his eyes wide and looking at Robin with an effortless expression that seemed insoucient (6), but one could listen to it in his voiceless articulation and witness it in his eyes. He was terrified of any news.

Robin was nearly about to say no, when the door opened slenderly. He and Cyborg looked toward it, wishfully hopeful and anticipative, yet despairing at the mentation (7) of what was to befall them, of who walked though that entryway.

In the somewhat ajar doorway was Starfire, tears falling down her slightly reddened cheeks. Her downcast and bloodshot green eyes looked lost, desperate, as if she was looking for something- anything- that could soothe her, despirited as she was.

"Star..." Robin said, losing his calm demeanor as he stood away from the counter he had been tilted against, reaching out toward her, knowing it was the least he could do.

She looked at him, shocked eyes widened, as if she couldn't believe it was truly his voice.

"Robin!" She raspingly sobbed, running toward him, and into his awaiting arms.

"Robin..." She gasped again.

"Shh... Starfire, it's okay. Just tell us how she is when you're ready. Just tell us when you're ready..." Robin cooed softly, supportingly holding her, and gently rubbing her back in circular motions, trying to assuage (8) her from her pain. He slowly bent his neck to set his head on her tembling one, closing his eyes and daring himself to not fall victim to his emotions.

He had to stay calm, strong, for her.

For everyone.

Cyborg watched from where he was seated on the couch, not wanting to rupture the silence that, once again, appeared to blanket them in its chilling slowness. He feared the news Starfire would bring. Whether good, or bad, he hoped... they all would be capable of handling it.

"Raven is..." Starfire heavy-heartedly uttered into Robin's chest, "Raven..."

She paused to swipe the glistening tears from her eyes. Saying her name greatly aflicted (9) her.

"... The doctors at the place of healing say... ... say she only has a few days, if her condition does not... improve." She murmured quickly and almost noiselessly to the unanswering floor, not wanting to have to look at the two others who occupied the room, "They say it... does not look good."

Finally, Starfire gazed up into Robin's hidden eyes, her own watering rapidly, and said only this:

"She's in so much pain... so much pain..."

Starfire continued to cry mutedly as Robin held her closely to himself, afraid if he let her go, she would fracture like a porcelian doll, frail and unacostomed to such a harsh and unyielding enviroment. He whispered comforting nonsense in her ear, silently hoping all the benevolently fortunate things he spoke of were true.

Cyborg looked downward at the cold, hard floor, thoughts drifting like a lost vagrant (10) to the day before where things had been better, where he did not have to ameliorate (11) the situation with false hopes and meaningless solace. He let his head fall down into his cupped metal hands as his elbows arranged themselves on his knees.

A lustrous and shining tear from his one real eye fell, making a soft noise of water against metal as it hit the palm of his no longer genuine hand.

"Why?" Was all he could choke out before, he too, was overcome with painful, undesirable emotions.

_ 'How did this happen?' _His mind cried to him, whole-heartedly knowing, that he did not yet cognize (12) the answer.

* * *

"Why? Why did she have to risk herself for me?" Beast boy loudly weeped into his pillow, his wavering voice slightly muted from it.

He had been lying there, nearly drowning himself in an ocean of grief and regret, ever since they made their way back to the "T"-shaped tower. His body ached languishly (13), both from the strenuously grueling battle that left them all a tad bit worse for wear and then having to carry her bleeding body the enemy had phlebotomized (14) from the entire distant to the hospital...

A new set of emotion-filled tears, so unenviable (15) they made him feel embarrassed and vunerable, came rushing hastily down his drawn, green face from his bloodshot eyes. They amalgamated (16) with the old, drenching his pillow even further. If it were possible.

"How could I have let it happen?" He questioned himself, pounding his fist against the mattress along side him, only to have it rebound into the air once more. "Was I so out of it that I couldn't even save myself? That I had to have some one else do it for me?"

He paused, just momentarily, to catch his breath before he continued the painful remembrance of what had happened.

"I saw it coming!" He began yelling a ear-splitting vociferation (17) not long after he had enough air to do so, shoving his face further into the pillow so no one, but himself, could hear him as he demanded an awareness of knowledge of himself for answers to the dubious questions he asked. "Why couldn't I have just moved out of the way!"

Beast boy continued to sob sadly, filled with a feeble sense of powerless debilitaltion (18). The guilt was just too overwhelming.

He blamed himself for what occured in the heat of battle and he believed with considerable certainty that everyone else did too. Even Starfire would, with a heart that knew only how to love and care for others, a heart that couldn't detest anyone.

He cried until he couldn't any longer, feeling his desiccated (19) eyes pain as they went dry with out any tears to dampen them.

And soon he was just lying on his side, which moved only when he gave a racking, shuddering breath, to the still, lull air around him.

He lay there, staring at the dark, acherontic (20) wall across his cluttered room.

Thinking.

_'How could this happen?'_

A door opened in the distance. Beast boy shot upright and statant at the familiar sound, nearly smacking his head on the low-level ceiling above his top bunk, and listened labouriously (21).

It was Starfire.

Beast boy got down from the higher bunk of his bed and walked over to the door. He knew she had stayed with Raven at the hospital and also that she would bring news of her condition. Whatever it may be.

He pressed his sagittiformly (22) pointed, green ear against it. He could just distinguisha few words of what she was saying.

"Robin!"

"It's okay Star...tell us when... ready... your..."

_ 'That was Robin.' _He thought to himself, straining to improve his hold on what he was hearing.

"...Raven..."

There was a pause as he heard Starfire snivel a bit, but shortly after she continued.

"The doctor's at... only a few days... condition does not improve... not look good..."

"What?" Beast boy gasped to himself, not quite believing what the alien girl outside his door had said. "No, ... this... can't be happening..."

"She's in so much pain... so... pain..."

Beast boy's eyes went wide, as if he was trying take in all of a broad, emcompassing (23) landscape at once, as he realized that what he was hearing wasn't a nightmare, but a harsh and tragic incubus (24) he had come to know and hate so well as his cruel reality.

"Why?" was all Cyborg said. He sounded so melancholic (25), so helpless.

Starfire started crying then. He heard Robin saying something, but he couldn't make it out.

Beast boy placed his head lightly, gently against the metal door, that though which, he heard every last one of his fears come true.

No tears fell from his eyes to the floor, they had vanished from his grasp long ago. He just slowly, vertiginously (26) sank to his knees and curled into a small, diminutive (27) ball of green. He shut his eyes tightly and swayed back and forth ever so slightly.

"No." He choked out, wanting it all to just leave him ungregariously (28) alone.

_ 'How did this happen?' _He thought, unknowingly mimicking Cyborg, as he cried, tears small but real all the same.

* * *

Well, that's the end of that chapter. Woo! I think I did a pretty good job revamping, if I do say so myself. !

Definitions in order of appearance:

**1. nonchalant**: _casual; unconcerned_

**2. vexation**: _someting that annoys, troubles, and/or distresses_

**3. forestallingly**:_ preventing something by knowing that is to happened_

**4. ascendancy**: _the state where one person or group has power over another_

**5. bicephalous**: _shaped like a cresant moon_

**6. insoucient**: _casual; unconcerned _(A/N: That sounds familiar...)

**7. articulation**: _expressing in coherent verbal form _

**8. mentation**: _thought_

**9. assuage**: _comfort_

**10. aflicted**:_ pained_

**11. vagrant**: _a person who doesn'thas a specific home; wanderer_

**12. ameliorate**: _to make better_

**13. cognize: know**; _acknowledge_

**14. languishly**:_ feebly; weakly_

**15. phlebotomized**: _draw blood from_

**16. uneviable**: _too embarressing to be evnied_

**17. amalgamated**: _joined together; mixed_

**18. vociferation**: _a loud utterance; shout_

**19. debilitation**: _weakening or loss of energy_

**20. desiccated**: _dried out_

**21. labouriously**: _straining physical effort_

**22. saggittiformly**: _shaped like an arrow-head; pointed at one end_

**23. emcompassing**: _broad in scope or content; large_

**24. incubus**: _a situation that seems like a terrible nightmare_

**25. melancholic**: _expressing sadness_

**26. vertiginously**: _dizzily; light-headed in nature_

**27. diminutive**: _very small_

**28. ungregariously**: _alone_

Please review!


	2. Anger and comfort from the metal man

Random quote #3: "If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow." –Old Chinese Proverb

* * *

Chapter 3  
  
Cyborg opened his eyes. Even though his fingers blocked most of his vision, he could still tell it was dark outside. Very dark.  
  
_'Have I been here that long?' _He thought to himself.  
  
He picked up his heavy head and looked around the once occupied room. Robin and Starfire were gone. Beast boy still hadn't come out of his room.  
  
Good.  
  
He needed time alone to just think and recollect.  
  
Cyborg sat back against the comfortable, dark couch, head resting on the back, and stared at the ceiling.  
  
The last rays of the sun, as it set, made everything seem so surreal, as if it all was just a dream. Deep inside, Cyborg wished it were.  
  
_'What happened?' _He once again questioned himself, still not knowing the answer.  
  
He tried to remember whatever he could, but it still didn't tell him much_.  
  
'All I can think of, is fighting some of Slade's weird, new henchmen on the city's bridge and then hearing B.B. yelling something like, 'How dare you hurt her!'  
  
I looked over just in time to see him running toward the city like a madman, carrying Raven...'_  
  
Cyborg sat upright. An idea had struck him like lightening in a storm. His eyes widened and a smile graced his face.  
  
_'That's it! One of Slade's henchmen must have done it!'_  
  
His smile turned to frown. He set his elbows on his knees and sighed in frustration.  
  
_'But what?'_  
  
Suddenly, all the anger he had buried inside, overtook him. He growled loudly and harshly stood up.  
  
_'Why couldn't I have been watching?!' _His mind asked him, vainly seeking answers to questions that didn't seem to have any. _'Why couldn't I have been looking out for her?!'_  
  
"Why?!" He yelled to the wall in front of him.  
  
He grabbed a vase off the table beside him and was about to throw it toward the wall that wouldn't answer him, when a timid voice stopped him dead in his tracks.  
  
"Cy, please don't be mad. It was my fault, not yours."  
  
Cyborg looked slowly over to where the voice was coming from and saw Beast boy in the doorway. His cheeks were flushed and tearstained. He looked like he had been crying forever.  
  
He felt a pang of guilt at his actions, just looking at the forlorn Beast boy. He needed to be comforted, reassured. Cyborg could tell.  
  
"Hey, B.B." Cyborg said, as he put the vase down gingerly. "You doing okay?"  
  
Beast boy just shook his head quickly, as his bottom lip quivered slightly and tears fell once more down his green face.  
  
"Come here, Beast boy," Cyborg said, walking over to where he was standing and wrapped his arms around the smaller boy in a warm embrace.  
  
At least, as warm as the metal teenager could ever get.  
  
Beast boy soon started crying into his shoulder, where he had laid his head, making whimpering and sniffling noises now and then.  
  
"Shh ... It's okay. It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault." Cyborg cooed softly, trying his best to calm the younger boy down.  
  
"B-but it is! It's a-all my fa-ault!" Beast boy argued, stuttering greatly because of his sobbing, "If I h-hadn't been s-so care-less, she w- would be ok-kay! She would b-be okay..."  
  
Beast boy went silent, but continued to cry as Cyborg whispered comforting nonsense to in his ear that he could only wish were true.

* * *

Review. 


	3. Awakened by fearful thinking

Random quote #4: "You live with your thoughts, so be careful what they are." –Eva Arrington.

* * *

Chapter 4  
  
"It's alright, Starfire." Robin said the weeping girl in his arms, although he knew in his heart that it wasn't.  
  
"B-but it is not!" She protested, yet agreed with him, still sobbing into his chest, "She ma-ay be dy-ing, and I a-am not there with he-er!"  
  
Even more tears continued to fall from her eyes, soaking Robin's wet spotted shirt even more. If it were possible.  
  
_'Why is this happening to us?' _She asked herself, shutting her eyes tightly_. 'What have we done to deserve this?'_  
  
Robin held her in his arms, gently rubbing small circles in her back, trying to think of a way to cheer her up. He really wasn't very good at it.  
  
Beast boy usually handled things like this, either with his jokes, or with his amazing ability to bring joy to those around him.  
  
But he wasn't here right now. Even if he was, he isn't in one of the happiest of moods to be of much help to Robin's current dilemma.  
  
Then, it hit him, like lightening does the ground in a summer storm.  
  
Maybe, if he did that...  
  
"Starfire?" He asked, looking down into the green eyes of the girl he held in his arms. He hoped it would work, for both their sakes.  
  
"Yes?" She answered, blinking away tears that threatened to give way to the everlasting pull of gravity and fall to the floor.  
  
"Let's go check on Raven." He said, smiling.  
  
Starfire nodded gratefully, finally smiling also, and soon they were waking out the door.

* * *

_'He looks so peaceful.'_  
  
Cyborg stood behind the couch, where he had laid the sleeping form of Beast boy. The poor kid worn himself out crying.  
  
He couldn't believe that the boy snoozing calmly right in front of him, was the same one who had been sobbing in his arms, blaming himself for what happened to Raven. Whatever did happen.  
  
_'Maybe I'll ask him when he wakes up.' _He thought to silently himself, standing up and, trying to not make a sound, crept over to the still boy, pulling the blanket snugger around him.

* * *

Raven was alone, abandoned in her own mind, in her own darkness. She knew nothing, but the silence that seemed to engulf her, strangle her, whenever she didn't fight it of.  
  
All she could feel was the numbness of her mind, the blankness of it all, and the incessant throbbing of her temples.  
  
_'Where am I?' _Her thoughts echoed to her.  
  
When she heard no reply, she began to panic. There was always someone, something there, that would answer her, tell her of all it knew about her question.  
  
_'Hello?'  
  
'Is anyone there?'   
  
'Beast boy, are you here? Answer me!'   
  
'Starfire?'   
  
'Robin?'   
  
'Cyborg?'   
  
'Beast boy?!' _

* * *

Beast boy's eyes suddenly shot open. He quickly jumped up off the couch, wide awake, and scared Cyborg, who was still tucking him in, half to death.  
  
Cyborg fell to the floor in his surprise with a loud 'thud' and sat there, staring at Beast boy with half the blanket on top of him, half of it under him.  
  
Beast boy looked around the somewhat empty room feverishly, as if searching for the face of a person who had called his name from the middle of a crowd.  
  
"Raven?" He asked to the non-speaking air of the Tower and the metal teen sitting before him who, at the moment, thought he was losing his mind.

* * *

I love the Random quotes! They make me feel special! 


	4. Waiting for something that may never com...

Random quote #5: "Present fears are less than horrible imaginings." –Anonymous

* * *

Chapter 5  
  
Starfire hated waiting. As a child, she was always told to do so; waiting for her sister to come home from schooling, for all her favorite festivals to come to town, or for her own schooling to be over with.  
  
Yet, in this "waiting room", as Robin had called it earlier, she was forced to. She fidgeted in her slightly comfortable seat and checked the black, circular clock on the white wall.  
  
11:35 the clock said, it's hands moving slowly, but steadily, across its face. Too slow for Starfire's liking. If only she could speed up time. Then she would be able to she if Raven was okay.  
  
_'What is taking them so long?'_ She thought impatiently to herself, her own hands cupped on her lap.  
  
She had been sitting there for an hour she figured in her head, and she still didn't hear any word from anyone, the doctors nor the nurses, about how Raven was doing.  
  
Starfire growled, the anger she had buried deep within her finally surfacing. She couldn't take it any more! She had to know now!  
  
"Robin, I'm going to go check if there is any news on Raven's condition of health." Starfire said quietly, to the boy's sleeping form, lying in the chair beside her on her left. "That is alright with you, yes?"  
  
Robin just snoozed away, admitting a small snore now and then, a small spot of drool forming at the corner of his mouth. He just lay there, oblivious to his surroundings.  
  
Starfire sighed, dejectedly. "Nevermind."  
  
But even though she was a little miffed, she understood. It was late and today had been a long day for them. For all of them.  
  
Starfire rose out of her stuffy chair and walked toward the huge receptionist's desk. Sitting there was an old, though hardly wrinkled, woman.  
  
She looked like she had been working there for a while, like she knew everything there was to know about the giant hospital.  
  
"Um, excuse me." Starfire said timidly to her, "But do you know if anything has happened with the condition of the girl in room number 262, on the third floor?"  
  
The woman looked up from what she was doing, eyes twinkling with kindness as she glanced at Starfire.  
  
"What room was that, Hun?" She asked, voice sweet and soft like a child's lullaby, but still clear and understandable.  
  
"Number 262, on the third floor." Starfire repeated.  
  
The old lady typed the room number into her computer with her long, nimble fingers and read what popped up into her sight.  
  
"Is there a young girl, named... Raven, staying in there?" She asked, not looking up from her computer screen.  
  
Starfire grew anxious; this woman was almost as slow as the clock on the wall!  
  
"Yes, that is correct. Any news?" She replied politely, none of her inner emotions coming out in her voice.  
  
The woman paused, staring at the monitor, as if concentrating on something. Something very difficult.  
  
_'What? What's wrong?' _Starfire thought growing worried. She feared and also hoped for the word this elderly one would bring. It could be bad news, but she had been waiting far too long to really care.  
  
She just had to know now the news, no matter what it was.  
  
Finally, the woman looked back toward Starfire and spoke in her lullaby voice.  
  
"No, I'm sorry Hun. No news. But I'll tell you right away if there is any. Okay?" She smiled sadly, yet still kindly at the girl in front of her.  
  
Starfire's spirit dropped and she looked down toward the floor, avoiding the gaze of the much older female. She murmured an, "Okay." and shuffled back to her seat next to Robin.  
  
_'I hate waiting.' _She thought grumpily, as she sat down, arms and legs crossed tightly.

* * *

Please Review.  
  
P.S. Thank you everyone who has reviewed so far. You made me so happy! =) 


	5. Denying the voice in his head

Hello, all you cyber people out there!  
  
Random quote #6: "There is no greater gift than a sympathetic ear." –Frank Tyger

* * *

Chapter 6  
  
"Beast boy- what the heck?" Cyborg asked, picking himself of the floor sulkily, from where he had fallen. He knew Beast boy was in a very fragile state after what had happened, but come on! It still wasn't a good reason to freak him out like that!  
  
Beast boy didn't say a word, just stood there like a statue.  
  
"Uh, Beast boy?" Cyborg asked, all anger leaving him very quickly, like money for dinks from a drunk.  
  
He waved his metal hand in front of Beast boy's small, shocked face. He just kept staring, unblinkingly, at the wall across from him, as if concentrating on something. Something very difficult. He was really starting to scare him now!  
  
Suddenly, Beast boy finally blinked and looked at Cyborg. He looked like he just found out the circus had been canceled. He spoke then, his voice quiet and scared.  
  
"Cyborg, I...I heard her. She was... yelling for all of us, to help her."  
  
Cyborg set his hand down by his side, no longer needing it there to try to wake Beast boy from his daze. He quirked a dark eyebrow.  
  
"Heard who?" he asked cautiously.  
  
"...Raven." Beast boy gulped as if not quite believing it himself and sat back down on the couch, only making a tiny indent with his light weight.  
  
Cyborg's mouth fell open and almost hit the floor.  
  
"What?!" he gasped, making Beast boy flinch, just meagerly.  
  
Beast boy looked down at his gloved hands, as they lay cupped on his lap.  
  
"I know it may seem crazy." He answered to the bewildered Cyborg, not looking at him. "But I'm positive it was her voice, calling my name."  
  
Cyborg couldn't believe what he was hearing. Just in twenty-four hours, one of his best friends gets hurt bad enough to have to go the hospital, another is hearing voices of said friend while he's sleeping, and he has no idea where the rest of them are! His mind couldn't process it all at once.  
  
He needed to sit down.  
  
"Beast boy," Cyborg sighed, as he sat down beside the sad, green boy, "There is no way she could have spoken to you. She's way over at the hospital. It just your mind, playing tricks on you. Even... even if she was in prefect health, she couldn't have eve-"  
  
"But she di-id!" Beast boy interrupted, setting his head in his hands, knees tucking neatly under his chin. Tears started to once again slide slowly and silently down his cheeks.  
  
"She did..." He sobbed, voice just slightly muffled because of his now wet hands. It was just too much. He hugged his arms around his legs and then cried into them instead.  
  
Cyborg started to reach over to him, to hug him, to comfort him, but drew back with a sigh. It was a hopeless battle. He had to show Beast boy himself, that she couldn't have spoken to him and that it was just his mind playing tricks on him, taking advantage of his frail state.  
  
He just had to, or else he might start blaming himself for what happened once again. And Cyborg couldn't risk that.  
  
"Beast boy." He said, gently shaking the younger boy's shoulder. "Let's go check on Raven."

* * *

Please Review.  
  
P.S. All will be explained (What happened, how she get hurt, what time it is, what's going on, etc.) in the next few chapters, so please hang on a bit longer. I just love suspense, that's why. 


	6. Touched by the words of a song

Hi! Sorry about the wait! I've been listening to my Beatles CD and you cannot imagine how hard it is to write this story when you have "WE ALL LIVE IN A YELLOW SUBMARINE!" and "LOVE, LOVE ME DO!" blasting in your ears.  
  
However, I found inspiration in one of the songs and I'll give a donut to whoever can name it. Here's a hint; it's a Beatles song. Laugh  
  
Random quote #7: "Is there a heart that music cannot melt? Alas! How is that rugged heart forlorn!" –Beattie  
  
P.S. ((blah)) means singing.

* * *

Chapter 7  
  
Cyborg kept his eyes toward the road. He didn't dare look at the boy sitting in the passenger seat beside him. He knew if he did, he would have to break the looming silence, that seemed to surround them in it's fog, and he had no idea what to say.  
  
He sighed.  
  
_'What could I say?' _He thought to himself wearily.  
  
Beast boy shifted uneasily in his seat. He had his head leading against the cold window that was a bit fogged from his breath and he watched the headlights of cars pass them by. Man they were going slow.  
  
_'I guess Cyborg's just tired. Then again, so am I. What time is it?'   
_  
Beast boy glanced quickly at the green numbers on the digital clock.  
  
12:06.  
  
He looked tiredly back out the misted window once more.  
  
_'No wonder.' _He thought, eyes following the next car. _'It's been tomorrow for six minutes.'   
  
'Dude, what should I do?' _Cyborg thought. _'I need to break this stupid frickin' quiet. But how?'   
  
_Cyborg racked his sleep-deprived brain, but couldn't think of anything. He searched around the car with his eyes. By chance, they fell upon the car's shiny, silver radio.  
  
_**'Perfect!'**_  
  
Beast boy heard Cyborg move beside him. He watched through the corner of his half-open eyes, as Cyborg turned on the radio. Instantly, the Oldies station came on. A guitar was playing softly and soon a man began singing a very dulcet solo.  
  
((Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away.  
  
Now it looks as though looks as they're here to stay.  
  
Oh, I believe in yesterday. ))  
  
A violin started playing a sad tune, adding its harmony in with the longing sound of the voice and guitar.  
  
((Suddenly, I'm not half the man I used to be.  
  
There's a shadow hanging over me.  
  
Oh, yesterday came suddenly. ))  
  
Beast boy stared at the radio. How could something so small know exactly how he felt?  
  
Cyborg started to regret turning the radio on. Beast boy wouldn't turn away from it. He had this look of shock on his face. He made a move to turn it off, but Beast boy grabbed his wrist.  
  
"No, I... like this song." Was all he said.  
  
"Okay", Cyborg said, returning his hand to the steering wheel.  
  
((Why she had to go, I don't know. She wouldn't say.  
  
I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday! ))  
  
((Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play.  
  
Now I need a place to hide away.  
  
Oh, I believe in yesterday. ))  
  
_'How true.' _Beast boy thought. He laid his head on the window and watched cars pass them by.  
  
((Why she had to go, I don't know. She wouldn't say.  
  
I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday! ))   
  
((Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play.  
  
Now I need a place to hide away.  
  
Oh, I believe in yesterday. ))  
  
((Mmm hmm mm, hm hm, hm mmmmm...))

* * *

Please Review! 


	7. Drifting in nirvana

WHERE DID ALL THE BEATLES FANS GO?! I mean it! Only ONE person knew the name of the song. I am sad and have lost all hope in ever uniting the world so that we really do all live in a yellow submarine.  
  
Sob. Oh well! ;  
  
Congratulations to Dark! Corny music starts playing. By all the power that is vested in me, I now declare you the new owner of the giant cyber donut! Applause comes out of nowhere.   
  
Random quote #8: "What lies behind us and what lies before us, are little matters compared to what lies within us." –Ralph Waldo Emerson  
  
P.S. New sign! ::Blah::. means flashbacks.

* * *

Chapter 8  
  
Raven was drifting... drifting in a pool of nothingness... serenity... darkness... She could almost feel herself spiraling downward into her own kind of nirvana.  
  
She opened her eyes and was greeted with a vast plain of black, deep and dark as space with no stars to light it. Everything was silent around her. All, but her own mind.  
  
Her thoughts echoed loudly through her head, questions with no apparent answers.  
  
_'Where am I?'  
  
'How did I get here?'   
  
'Will I ever get back home?' _  
  
She closed her eyes once more and tried to think of anything that may have led her here, to this place of nonexistence. Almost as if on cue, flashes of memories and distant sounds danced across her senses.  
  
::Beast boy laughing about how he beat Cyborg at video games.::  
  
::Robin saying something and all of them running out.::  
  
::An army of black clad warriors.::  
  
::"Titians Go!"::  
  
::Starfire yelling for Beast boy to watch out.::  
  
::His shocked face as the henchman ran toward him.::  
  
::Her voice. Worried.::  
  
::"Beast Boy!"::  
  
::Pain. Terrible pain.::  
  
::Strong arms around her, carrying her.::  
  
::"You'll be okay, Raven."::  
  
Then, as suddenly as they appeared, they were gone, leaving her alone once more and deeply disturbed.

* * *

"How many are here?" The doctor asked the old woman standing beside him, his eyes roaming the waiting room.  
  
"Only two so far." The elderly nurse responded. "One of the young men and the other girl. The other two boys will no doubt join them soon."  
  
The doctor sighed, looking back toward the nurse.  
  
"Then we will wait until they are all here before we tell them." He said. He walked slowly down the white hall, long coat swaying behind him.  
  
The old woman watched him leave. When she could no longer see him, she closed her eyes and shook her head sorrowfully, before heading back to her desk in the waiting room.  
  
Everything was silent. All but her footsteps, echoing through the barren hallway, and her soft voice whispering quietly.  
  
"Those poor dears..."

* * *

Cyborg quietly put the car in park and unbuckled his seatbelt. He opened the door and was about to get out, when he realized Beast boy hadn't followed suit.  
  
He glanced over at the boy in the passenger seat. He looked as if he was deeply lost in thought, concentrating very hard on something. Something very difficult.  
  
"Beast boy, we're here." Cyborg said, startling the younger boy from his daze, making Cyborg smile, beside himself.  
  
Beast boy looked out the window at the huge building looming down at him. It seemed easy to get lost in its magnitude.  
  
_'Raven's somewhere in there..._' Beast boy thought to himself as he stepped out from the car and began following Cyborg toward the large, glass doors of the entryway to the hospital.  
  
_'And I intend to find her. '_

* * *

This chapter is a little bit longer than I expected it would be, but I'm not complaining!  
  
Review, Please and if you haven't already, check out my other story, "Unforgiven". Luv ya!  
  
P.S. The song's name was "Yesterday". 


	8. Lord, give me strength

I cut my hair! Really short!  
  
It is now shorter than the bottom of my ears!  
  
I LOVE IT!!!!!! [Giggles like a school girl .]  
  
Random quote #9: "One joy shatters one hundred griefs." –Old Chinese Proverb

* * *

_'It's so big...' _Beast boy thought as he walked slowly, calmly, beside Cyborg down a bright hallway, heading to the waiting room. He was squinting at the colorless walls that seemed keen on making him go blind.  
  
_'And so white... '  
_  
Cyborg pushed the hallway's end doors open just slightly, sticking his head in cautiously. His eyes roamed the waiting room until...  
  
He smiled.  
  
_'There they are.' __

* * *

_

Starfire was pacing the floor in front of the chair she had jumped up from.  
  
She was going crazy! She couldn't take it anymore! The tension was eating away at her in her attempt to stay calm and there was nothing she could do about it.  
  
To her, it seemed like everything was mocking her with its total bleakness. She hated it.  
  
It had been two whole hours since they had brought Raven here, yet wait here is all they've been allowed to do. They could not leave, just in case there came any news. They could not go see her. They couldn't even have a bed to go lay down in!  
  
Robin didn't seem to mind, he was still sound asleep! On one of the awful, stiff chairs the hospital probably got from the junkyard no less.  
  
Starfire sat back down in her uncomfortable seat, tired, stressed out, and defeated.  
  
May be she too, should try to sleep...

* * *

"Only twelve thirty and these two still can't stay awake." Beast boy joked, trying to once again be his old, smiling self. "They must be a hoot at parties."  
  
Cyborg smiled and laughed a bit. It felt to hear jokes coming from Beast boy again. The car ride must have given him some to calm down and think. He was happy for him, even with circumstances like this.  
  
"I guess we should wake 'em up then, huh?" He said looking towards Beast boy.  
  
"Do it! Do it!" Beast boy chanted, jumping up and down happily.  
  
"'Kay, her I go!"  
  
Cyborg poked Robin I the side and...

Nothing happened. He just continued to snore like his life depended on it. Cyborg looked over at Beast boy and shrugged.  
  
"Poke him harder!" The green one said, egging him on. So he did.  
  
Robin snorted loudly, now awake and groggy. He blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes sleepily, glancing up at the two boys in front of him.  
  
"Oh. Hey guys. Didn't hear you come in." He said, stifling a yawn. He sat up straight and stretched, then settled back down in his seat.  
  
"I guess it's hard to hear when you're dead to the world." Beast boy said, taking a seat next to the sleeping form of Starfire. Cyborg sat down in the chair across from them all.  
  
Robin smiled tiredly, beside himself.  
  
"I guess it is..."

* * *

Raven flouted though the darkness, aware, yet unaware, of what went on around her. Her mind had stopped trying to tell her of the past and just stayed silent, knowing it was all in vain.  
  
And though the images still haunted her, she no longer wondered about what happened, nor why.  
  
She knew that when she got out of this place of loneliness, her friends would be waiting for her. Wherever they are.  
  
_'If I ever do get out of here...' _Her thoughts soon reminded her.

* * *

"Doctor, the other two young men have joined the first boy and girl." Came the calling of the nurse, her voice echoing off the brick walls of the staff room.  
  
A man slowly arose from his seat, leaving his cup of coffee behind him. He followed the nurse out toward the waiting room, white coat slightly swaying in rhythm with each step.  
  
_'Lord, give me strength...' _He thought solemnly.

* * *

Oooh! Cliffy!  
  
Sorry, but once again, 'I love suspense.'  
  
Please Review! 


	9. Secrets unfold

Hello again everyone!  
  
I hope you aren't mad at me for taking a long time to update, my life been a bit stressful the past few days. My uncle broke his neck, my grandpa's in the hospital, and I've been doing things for church, so I'm a little swamped. Sweat drop.

Random qoute #10: " The greatest hero is he who can overcome himself." -Danish Proverb

* * *

Anyways, here's a new chapter!  
  
The doctor walked silently toward the waiting room, knowing that what he had to do, had to be done very carefully and with as much sympathy as he could muster. The only thing he didn't know was how to go about doing it.  
  
Sure, he had done this before, but never had he ever had to break the news to superheroes, much less the Teen Titans.  
  
He stopped just in front of the waiting room's doors, staring out though the small, square windows at the group of friends beyond them.  
  
The nurse leading him there just continued walking, not noticing that he had halted halfway in her rush to her desk. The metal doors swung open as she pushed though them, making a faint swish noise when fell back to their original positions.  
  
He watched as one of the boys asked her if there was any news and their faces when she told them that the doctor, himself, would tell them shortly. They looked excited, yet scared to hear it.  
  
The doctor looked toward the ceiling, the white, plain ceiling, and stood there for a while. He had no idea of what to say to them, how to start.  
  
'I guess that I'll just tell them the truth...' He thought to himself, sighing and looking back out the window. He stepped forward, hand out, pushing the door open before him, and prayed that he would say the right words.

* * *

Robin sat there on his seat quietly, listening to Beast boy's silence. He had asked him about what had happened, yesterday, on the bridge, and now he wished he hadn't. Beast boy obviously didn't want to talk about it, judging by his sad face and shut mouth.  
  
"Beast boy, please." Robin pleaded; hoping with all his heart Beast boy would forgive him for asking such a question, but he just had to know! It was eating him up from the inside.  
  
"It will make you feel better if you just tell us what happened. You're the only one who knows."  
  
Beast boy looked down at his feet, eyes holding sadness and regret, but most of all guilt. He sighed and sat back in his seat.  
  
"Okay." He whispered to them as if he was afraid anyone else would hear other than the two boys across from him and the sleeping girl beside him. "I'll tell you."

* * *

Beast boy felt awful. He had been keeping what had happened a secret, for no one to know but he and Raven. He didn't even think about how the others felt in not knowing, only worrying about himself, his own feelings.  
  
He had to make it up to them by letting them in on his secret, no matter how hard it was.  
  
"Well," He began, voice slightly shaking even though he calm, "You all know that it all started when we got the emergency call from the police. How they said that there were some new monsters from Slade destroying the bridge and that we went after them. So I'll just tell you what happened after that."  
  
He swallowed slowly and took a deep breath before continuing.  
  
"Raven and I were fighting together on the far end of the bridge, trying to get rid of the few that were eating away at the supports, when we were outnumbered. We tried to fight them off, but there were too many. They had these strange new weapons I had never seen before and as you probably already know, they were very powerful.  
  
"We were stuck in a small clearing, surrounded on all sides by the enemy. I couldn't see any of you guys at all because you were at the other end, and I knew that it would be really hard to fight them off. I think Raven knew that too.  
  
"We waited for them to make the first move and that was probably our first mistake. They all fired at us all at once. I quickly changed into a bird, flying up with Raven, dodging the attack.  
  
"Suddenly, one of them shot upward, right at me. I was too stunned to move. Raven flew in front of me and took the hit, screaming so loud I can still hear it. She fell to the ground and stayed there. She didn't move at all."  
  
Tears started running down Beast boy's face, but he still continued with his story. Robin and Cyborg stared at him in awe. They couldn't believe all the things that Beast boy had gone though, just in one day. They listened intently to what he had to say next.  
  
"I was shocked." Beast boy said, looking down at his feet once again, avoiding the gazes of his teammates. "I could hardly think straight, until the creeps started running at her. I changed into a T-Rex and smacked them away as hard as I could, off the bridge. It was a good thing that they couldn't swim.  
  
"I went back to normal and knelt down by her. She was hardly breathing. I did the only thing I could think of, I picked her up and started running toward the city. I didn't think about changing into an animal to get there quicker, all I thought was that I had to get her to a hospital and fast.  
  
"I ran as hard as I could to the hospital, totally forgetting about the fight on the bridge. The doctors took her right away, but I couldn't go with her. I was so tired that if I hadn't sat down when I did, I just may have passed out.  
  
"Luckily, Starfire was there, having followed me to the hospital, and she went in with Raven. I stayed in the waiting room, resting, until you guys came to pick me up and bring me back home."  
  
Beast boy set his head in his hands, his job done, his secret told. Tears flowed freely down from his eyes toward the floor, finally giving into the pull of gravity. He cried silently, happy to have the story off his shoulders at last.

* * *

The doctor stopped, shocked and unable to move.  
  
Had he heard right? Had this boy sitting here be the one that saved the young girl's life?  
  
He smiled sadly, beside himself, and slowly backed away into the hallway once again, happy that they had not seen him. He knew that he had to tell them at some point today, but he decided to wait a bit longer and let them get prepared for it before he broke the news to them. He didn't want to add more grief to their hearts just yet.  
  
'So sad...' He thought to himself, walking away down the empty and bare hallway, white coat swaying in tune with his footsteps.

* * *

Yea! That was my longest chapter ever!  
  
Please review! 


	10. The long awaited news, the terrible trut...

YES! Summer's here at last!  
  
Does the 'YEA!' dance while chanting "No more school! No more school!" over and over again.   
  
Ahem, yes well... ... ... ... whatever... ... ... ... ...  
  
I am sorry for the wait, but I've been having technical difficulties with this chapter, thus why I have those 'Lineseperater' things. THIS COMPUTER IS DRIVING ME CRAZY!!!  
  
GAAAAAARRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
Takes deep breath Okay, I'm done now. =P.  
  
Random quote #11: "To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world." –Anonymous.  
  
Here's the new chapter!  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
Starfire gasped in her mind, shocked, but luckily it couldn't be seen though her mask of sleep. Had she heard right? Was that the Beast boy she had grown to love as one her best friends? Was he the one crying beside her?  
  
She had awoken from her light sleep when Cyborg and Beast boy walked into the waiting room, but she didn't open her eyes, for fear of what state of sadness they where in. Starfire did not want to see them when they were in sorrow. It would only make her eyes water even more.  
  
But when she heard them talking like nothing really happened, she knew that they had overcome their pain and was about to "wake up", when all of a sudden it became very quiet. Robin had asked Beast boy what happened and Beast boy did NOT want to talk about it.  
  
'Oh no!' She had thought in her mind. 'More grief has befallen my friends.'  
  
Then Beast boy started telling the story of yesterday's events, about how Raven had risked her life for him and how Beast boy had to watch her fall to the ground and not get back up.  
  
She had listened to every sentence, every word, of what the boys were speaking of, yet she was still quite a bit confused. Is that what had really happened? She did not know for sure, but it all kind of made sense.  
  
'It would explain a lot of things...' She thought to herself, listening to Beast boy cry softly at her side.  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
Nothing.  
  
Infinite nothingness.  
  
Zippo.  
  
Nada.  
  
Nonexistent.  
  
Zero.  
  
Void of anything.  
  
Empty.  
  
No matter what you called it, nor how you spelled it, it was all the same to Raven. It was what was around her, yet not. Below, above, beside, it made no difference. The thing that she had tried so hard to sucome to had surrounded her. Consumed her, until she too was part of it.  
  
She was alone. She felt no emotions. She felt nothing at all, but the distant throb of her temple. Yet even that seemed to amount to the endless void of echoing blankness.  
  
There was no light, no sound, and no real, solid things that she had come to love about her world. Her world, not his awful place of misery, was where she belonged, where she had made her home.  
  
She missed it so much, the laughter, the sorrow, the corny jokes, and videogames, even though she was only away from it a mere few minutes it seemed like...  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
"Where is he?" A young nurse said softly to herself as she sat beside her older companion, brow knotted, searching the waiting room and all that she could see with her eyes.  
  
She had told Dr. Kollock the remaining two had joined the others at least ten minutes ago and he still wasn't here!  
  
Sometimes she wondered about the man. He often forgot about things on purpose so that he could "break it to them at the right moment."  
  
'Humph.' The nurse thought to herself, going back to her work knowing he'd show up eventually. 'He's a bit of a Drama king, even Lucy admits it.' (A/N "Lucy's the old lady nurse from earlier chapters.") She stole a glance at the gentle old woman who sat at her side.  
  
'And Lucy never says anything about anyone that could be hurtful.'  
  
Just then, the said doctor walked through the waiting room doors. (A/N "Well... he actually threw the doors open and strutted through, but... that's kind of not the point." ;) He looked grim and sympathetic as he looked over towards the group of teenagers in front of him.  
  
His voice held the same emotions as he spoke to them.  
  
"I have some good and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?"  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
Beast boy stared up at the man before him with wide bloodshot, but dry eyes. Was this the doctor who would tell us the news?  
  
He couldn't stand the anxiety, it was eating him alive.  
  
"Please just, tell us how she is." He said softly in barely a whisper. "We just have to know."  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
Robin and Cyborg glanced at each other. They didn't need words to say what was on their minds.  
  
'This was it.'  
  
Cyborg looked back the doctor, whilst Robin "awoke" Starfire. They all stared up at the doctor, waiting and fearing what was to be said.  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
Dr. Kollock gazed into each and every worried face of the teens that sat before him and then closed his eyes slowly. He sighed and opened them again. He spoke quietly, clearly saying each word so that they were easy to understand.  
  
"When you first brought her here, we were afraid that she wouldn't make it. Her wounds were of a kind that we in this hospital, had never seen before. We tried our best to stabilize her condition and I guess we did too much of a good job in doing that.  
  
"I am afraid that your friend Raven... is in a coma."  
  
'Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater. Lineseperater.'  
  
Dun dun dun!  
  
Heh, this story is a bit like a soap opera if you ask me. All it needs is a few affairs and Poof it will the script of the next season of "The Young and The Super Powered", or "As The Tights Turn."  
  
Laughs   
  
Anyways, please review and make me happy! 


	11. Numb reactions and the bright start of v...

Hey! I'm alive!

Yes, I know it's been quite a while, but that isn't my fault.

My damn, mean, over-powerful volleyball coach has practice everyday after school for three hours (unless we have a game) and by the time I get home I'm so tired that I have barely enough energy to take a shower and go to bed.

Now that volleyball season is here, I no longer can eat supper. Sigh

But today was different! For I was sick today and just could not go to practice, so I finished this chapter.

Yay for being sick!

Random quote #12: "When the world is against you and you're at the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on." –Anonymous

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

"Wha-what?" Starfire stuttered out softly, staring at the doctor. "I do not understand..."

"A coma... is like she's sleeping, Star." Robin said quietly, looking at the cold, linoleum floor in front of him, as if it were the most interesting thing he had ever seen. "Only... she can't wake up and..."

'Maybe never will.' He thought to himself, not being able to bring himself to say it out loud.

Starfire's eyes widened, and then closed tightly when she felt hot tears try to fall down her face.

She understood.

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

'... ... ... ... ...' were the thoughts of Beast boy. He knew not what to do, nor what to make of the new information he had just received.

Should he be angry with the doctors for making this happen? Or with himself?

Should he be happy that Raven was just in a coma and still alive?

Should he be scared that she was?

Was it all of the above?

Or maybe none at all?

All these questions blended themselves with each other, making it impossible to decipher which was the correct choice for him.

So he just sat there, motionless and hardly breathing, unable to feel much of anything other than disbelief.

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

Lucy looked through her thick spectacles with her kind, soft, brown eyes at the young children in front of her and inside, her heart wept.

The tall, strong, half metal boy was leaning against the back of his chair sluggishly, one large hand rubbing small circles at his temples. He looked stressed, tired, and most of all worried.

A thin, red-haired girl was sitting next to the boy in the black mask and matching cape, her head on his shoulder, his arm around hers, and both of them whispering comforting words to each other softly and slowly.

Then there was the small, green lad sitting across from them all. He just sat there staring at the wall, dark, green eyes blank and unfocused. Yet as void of emotion his eyes were, Lucy could still see glimmers of sadness, raw and pure, underneath the haze of confusion.

She never really let it show, even in all her years of being a nurse, but every time she saw the sorrowful faces of the victim's friends, or family, a tiny part of her dies.

And right now, a whole chuck of her very being was gasping for its last breath.

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

"It will be alright, Star. A coma most definitely doesn't mean death."

"I know that, but-"

"No, there are no 'buts'. She'll wake up, don't worry."

"Thank you, Robin. I just cannot help thinking about what might happen if she does not."

"Me too, Star. Me too."

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

Once when he was very young, around the age of five, Cyborg and his grandma used to go to church together every Sunday morning, dressed in their finest and cleanest clothes.

It was an old church with creaky floorboards that had an even older pastor, but Cyborg loved to go. He loved the songs, the music, and especially the bible readings.

One of his favorites was Psalm 23.

He now turned to those verses for comfort.

'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.'

'He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadth me beside the still waters.'

'He restoreth my soul: he leadth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.'

'Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.'

'Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anoitest my head with oil: my cup runneth over.'

'Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me in all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.'

'Amen.'

'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want...'

Thus were the concentrated and rhythmic thoughts of Cyborg.

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

Dr. Kollock studied the children before him. Many emotions plagued their faces in great drones.

Worry.

Disbelief.

Anger.

Concentration.

Sadness.

Hopelessness.

Maybe he hadn't let them hear the news at the right time. Maybe he wasn't gentle about the whole matter. Maybe he just wasn't very comforting.

Or maybe they needed to get their friend back.

'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''

"Who would like to see her first?" The doctor said in a quiet ton of voice.

Three of the four heads turned toward him.

He fumbled for the right words. "I mean she's stable, so a few visitors wouldn't hurt. Just remember that only one person can be in the room at a time. Those are the rules."

And with that statement, the faces of the Teen Titians brightened ever so slightly.

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Next chapter: Starfire's Visit!

Push the review button now! And review also, of course...


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